TravelinGirl

Ciao a Firenze!

Just got into Florence by train from Venice. It's overcast and muggy here, rained pretty hard in Venice this morning. Luckily it was for the one hour that I was in the Guggenheim museum, so that was fine by me.

Venice is magical. I always go there thinking that I'm not going to enjoy it, and then I always go away thinking it's pretty cool. (Forgive punctuation or spelling errors - things are in different places on Italian keyboards.) The first night I got there, I took a waterbus to the stop at San Marco, and then walked with my luggage from San Marco to my hotel (about a block from the Accademia bridge). My trainer will be so proud - I got arm and leg workouts hoisting my 40 pound suitcase up and down the steps of the 7 bridges between San Marco and my hotel. Woo! Checked in, cleaned up a bit then went to have dinner on a little piazza. There was a violinist and guitarist serenading the square, so I enjoyed that. Then again, the 2 glasses of wine and a Bellini (peach juice and prosecco - a sparkling white wine) may have helped with that too. Oh, and a bit of jetlag and dehydration. Back to the hotel, took a sleeping pill and voilà - no more jetlag. Walked ALL over the city (to San Marco, to the Rialto bridge, to the train station, back to Accademia). Went to the modern art museum in there and had lunch at their cafe in a little booth overlooking the Grand Canal. It was lovely.

This morning I went off to the Guggenheim. It was closed when I got there, so I wandered a bit and took a few photos. You have to check your bags (even purses) in museums now, so I didn't get to take any photos in the museum, but I wish I could have. Seeing the rain on the sculpture in the garden of a naked man (somewhat abstract) sitting (with a huge erection) on a horse with his arms straight out and his face turned toward the sky (as if he were welcoming the rain) was something really cool. I can't wait to get home and talk art with all the artsy folks, and architecture with the architecture folks. (I took some forbidden pictures in the modern art gallery, so of course I have to share those.) It was great to wander around both of those museums with hardly anyone there (in the first one I had entire wings to myself at times).

The food has been good. So far just sandwiches for lunches as I've been on the go. Dinner last night was a steak (served with lemon - yummy) with fries. Not very Italian, but what I was craving. And instead of tiramisu - which I think is a Venetian creation - I've had crepes for dessert every night. (i'll have to even up the balance when I got to Paris.)

Anyway, I've been spending like a madwoman (bought mom a beautiful mask in Venice), so some of you will have authentic Venetian gifts for christmas. Things are SOOOOOO expensive here - € to the dollar is killing me. Oh well, when in Rome (or Florence, or Venice)... Off to find an enoteca and have some gelato (can you believe I've been here 2 days already and not had ANY gelato???)

I'll check in again when I can! XOXO

posted by Shelly @ 7:03 AM